July 20-Maribor-->Pula with some pit stops, by Allison Gunderson

After waking up and recharging with breakfast the team was off to Croatia/Bled by 8:00. 

We all were sad to leave Maribor but we knew that there were fun (and sunny, finally) days ahead. We took the bus for a couple hours and entertained ourselves with movies, reading, music, and trying to squeeze in a few more hours of sleep! 

When we arrived at the Bled Gorge, locally known as the Vintgar Gorge, we were eager to get on the trail! Once we started we all were amazed by the breathtaking river running through it. The colors of the water ranged in beautiful blues and greens. Of course, we all had to take dozens of pictures! The hike itself was only a mile there and back so it wasn't too strenuous. We followed the river down and passed a dam that sprayed us with a very refreshing mist. Once we got to the end we had an incredible view of the waterfall and a rainbow even was visible in the mist! It was a truly gorgeous sight to see. 

After our hike we headed to Bled for lunch. We broke off into little groups to go have lunch and explore the city.  The menu ranged but most groups got pizza with a quick gelato run after. 

The view of the lake was spectacular and was a perfect spot to take pictures.

The whole crew made it back on the bus by 2 and we were off to Croatia. Eventually, we made it to our hotel in Pula  at 6:30 and had a hour to explore our hotel before dinner that night and bed. It was another great day for team NNJ!

July 18-Maribor Day 2, by Jensen Oppio

Our NNJ group started the beautiful and sunny day off with a town tour of Maribor, Slovenia. Coming from a rainy Budapest, the sunshine brought excitement as we walked the alley ways searching for lunch. 

After lunch, we were given dutiful tasks to assemble little treat bags for children less fortunate than us. From candy to note pads, these little goody bags would deliver happiness to a great group of kids that we were to visit the next day. 

Once we put together our little presents, we made the usual gelato stop and headed back to the bus. From there, we had a two hour rest period back at the hotel, for dinner was at 7, in which we took a gondola to the top of Mariborsko Pohorje. 

The view was breathtaking and was a beautiful place for some pictures! As soon as we got to the top of the hill, a dreadful sea of water began to pour from the sky. Just imagine 12 girls all fancied up in cute dresses and makeup, running down wet grass and mud to the safe haven of the restaurant! 

Once inside the warm and cozy restaurant, the rain immediately ceased and we finally began to take pictures. It was definitely a memorable experience and an all around good time served with amazing food. Happiness radiated from inside as smiles and laughs were exchanged. It was inarguably a great day for the crew of NNJ! 

July 21-Pula Day 2, by Journey Martin

Today was our first full day in the beautiful city of Pula! We woke up after a good night's sleep and ate breakfast at the hotel. From there we went and played the Pula volleyball team. [The gym was only a few minutes walk from the hotel!] 

We went 3-0 with them and had a fun time while playing. However, they were a little short on players so some of us got the opportunity of playing on the same team as them! For our last game here in Europe it felt good to win and learn something from it as well. 

We are all very blessed to be able to be a part of this experience not only here in Europe, but also being able to play the sport we love. 

We took showers and ate lunch, after the game, then headed down to the beach. [The beach is very rocky and cliffy, but people bring yoga mats, camping pads, and towels and just get comfortable!] We broke into groups and explored different parts of the beach. Some just enjoyed the sun, while others had a good time jumping of the dock. [The water is an incredible color, and is beautifully clear]. 

Slowly, everyone started to head back to the hotel and many decided to go to pool for a swim as well. We dried off and decided to partake in a game of beach volleyball. After, we had dinner and had a small team meeting to talk about our plans for the next day. 

We then decided to take off just the girls on the most important thing of the day, finding ice cream!

After our little adventure a band was playing, by the pool, many went out and started dancing. We stayed out dancing, laughing, talking, and having fun. 

We also [followed the adults' example and] jumped into the pool with all of our clothes on! 

As the trip is coming to an end I think we are all very grateful for the chance to be here and very happy we have all gotten to know each other. While we are sad to be leaving soon we are all also ready for some good old fashioned American food

July 19-Maribor Day 3, by Eleanor Salkoff

I think everyone would agree that today was one of our best days on this trip so far!  We woke up to clear blue skies (finally) and ate breakfast at the hotel.  At about 10, the team and Kate headed up the gondola to the top of the mountain.  From there, we met with a counselor from a camp at the mountain.  Then we drove for ten minutes to get to the camp which was hidden back in the forest.  From the moment we arrived at camp, we could tell from the kids' smiling faces that we would have a great time.  Coming into it, we didn't really know what to expect because NNJ hasn't done this excursion before; however most of us have experience with little kids and were excited to play and interact with them.  For about two hours we played basketball and volleyball with the kids while some of us made bracelets with them in the shade.  All of the them were adorable (aged 6-18), and some of them spoke good English while others had a harder time with it, but we still were able to communicate and have fun.  After a fun couple of hours with the kids, they sang us a song in Slovene and thanked us for visiting.  Then we handed each of the kids gift bags that we put together after shopping in Maribor yesterday.  It was so great to see them smiling and happy, especially knowing that they all are dealing with difficult situations, and all of the counsellors were warm and welcoming throughout the visit.  

After our trip to the camp, we hiked back to the gondola and took it down to the bottom of the mountain.  From there we walked to the hotel and had a quick lunch before playing our final match against the Croatian Junior National team.  During the first two sets we didn't play our best but in the last set we had some great rallies and we were able to stay more mentally tough throughout the game.  In the end, playing opponents like the Croatian team should make us stronger and challenge us to do better, and we all can work to reach a level of mental toughness that allows us to compete with high performing teams.  We all learned a lot from playing the Croatians and can apply that knowledge to volleyball matches in the future. 

To wrap up the day we all dressed up and drove out to a fancy vineyard for dinner.  The views of the vineyard were beautiful and we were able to take tons of pictures with the sunset.  Overall today was a great day and Maribor has been an awesome, memorable experience.  We're excited for Bled and Pula tomorrow!

July 17-Budapest-->Maribor, by Makenna Wheeler and Rilee Negron

Rilee:

On our last day in Budapest we went to a Castle. It was cold and raining but that didn't stop us from having a good time. We bought umbrellas and rain ponchos, walked around a cathedral, and had a beautiful sight of the city. We had lunch at our hotel and got our luggage ready to leave for Maribor. We left around 1 in Budapest to arrive at 5:30 in Maribor. We had dinner at the hotel and then we went to bed. 

Makenna: The time is flying by! This morning we had breakfast at our hotel in Budapest and then hopped on a bus for a four hour drive to Maribor, Slovenia*. To keep ourselves busy, many of us read, listened to music, or caught up on sleep during the travel. The passing view along the road was beautiful, and quickly changing. From large cities to small towns, green forests to fields of wheat and sunflowers. 

We made it to our hotel in Maribor, the Dras Center, and saw other teams staying here as well! We settled into our new rooms and some of us went to the court to watch a volleyball game, a team from Croatia playing against a team from Maribor. We ate dinner at the hotel and got to enjoy the sunset from the balcony. After dinner we went back to our rooms and settled down, preparing for the adventures and games to come. 

*Editor's note: Between 9-noon this morning, we branched off to get a final look at Budapest before departing for Maribor. While it was still pouring rain, we got a better idea of the sites of the city as Brooke, our guide, took the kids to a castle on the Buda side, and some of the adults took a river cruise and saw the Parliament building in the Pest side. The Danube and its bridges divide the city, and we got some good views from both sides. 

It really is a beautiful city, and many of us are looking to return during a more sunny trip. 

Everyone is in good spirits and we've pulled into the Slovenia hillside-town of Maribor for a restful three days. We will get up to some exciting things here, though. More on that later, stay tuned!

Parliament building 

Parliament building

Parliament building

Gellert hotel from Danube 

One of many beautiful buildings on the Pest side of the Danube 

View of Pest from Buda Castle

Buda castle

July 16-Budapest Day 2, by Danielle Linscheid

Today was our first full day in Budapest. We all met with our guide and walked through the rain to the subway to get to our first destination. We had to change our plans a little due to the weather so we went to The Great Market Hall which is a massive indoor market where we split into groups and looked at all the little shops and stands. In the market we saw vendors selling quilts, tapestries, souvenirs, and a variety of meats, fruits, and vegetables. We then took a bus to the second largest Basilica in Europe. There we observed the church, lit prayer candles, and took pictures of the beautifully painted ceilings. After touring the Basilica we headed to a three-story mall where we ate lunch in smaller groups and shopped. Later in the afternoon we played our second game of the trip against a Hungarian team and won 4-0. To finish the day we got the opportunity to have dinner with the team where we talked and got to know the players. This was such a unique and incredible experience because for the first time we were able to learn about our opponents' lives and make some really great friends. 

NNJ and MTK teams

July 15-Prague-->Budapest, by Emma Hansen

Today in Prague, after we woke up and had breakfast, we went to the train station. There, we got on a 6 hour long train ride to get to Budapest. On the train, we kept ourselves entertained by reading and playing card games, but when we had a chance, we caught up on sleep. Outside of the train, we passed beautiful landscapes filled with castles and quaint towns. Once we arrived in Budapest, we took a bus to our hotel and settled in. In little while, we went out to dinner at an Italian restaurant with our new guide for Budapest. After a big dinner of pizza and salad, we took a subway back to our hotel and went to sleep. 

Waiting for the train to Budapest

Hungarian forints: about 285 to $1

July 14-Prague Day 3, by Sara Pool

Day 3! Today we met up at 10 to walk to old town Prague and see the clock tower there. The clock was on a beautiful church and at every hour it rang out the time while statues of apostles rotated by the window. We then split into groups to explore Old town Prague. One group went to an amazing mall and found a bunch of international stores and got some souvenirs. Another shopped, climbed to the top of clock tower, and created gigantic bubbles. The last group went into the mirror maze, kaleidoscope cinema and imaginarium. Each group ate lunch in different Prague restaurants and got gelato. We then got ready to play our first game! We played an adult Prague team, in which we lost 3 sets to 1. It was a great experience where we learned a lot about the difference of the game in Europe. Hopefully we will play better in Budapest! We then went back to eat a traditional Czech meal of potato soup and goulash. Then we headed to bed after a long and eventful day.

NNJ with the Czech team

Waiting for goulash and potato soup at Olympia restaurant

In rainy old town square 

The Astronomical Clock Tower in Old Town 

July 13-Prague Day 2, by Alli Reviglio

It was our first full day in Prague and we are off to a great start! 

We all got a good nights rest after the exhaustion of travel and activities yesterday. Everyone had breakfast at the hotel before 10:00 AM when we met to take off for our day! We started for the Petřín Lookout Tower which took a bit of a hike to get there. We saw beautiful views on the way up to the top. Many choose to climb to the top of the tower which overlooked much of Prague. 

After, we headed for the Prague castle where we split off for about 45 minutes. A few of the girls climbed the castle to look out on the view at the top! It started to rain a bit, but the sun came out shortly after! After coming back together we watched the guard changing ceremony in the front of the castle which happens every hour. 

We then walked back to the base of the Saint Charles Bridge where there are many shops and restaurants. We split off again for lunch and had to be back to the hotel by 5 to rest and get ready. The different groups we split off in went to a variety of restaurants including a fancy Czech restaurant, a Mexican restaurant, and an Irish Pub! All of the groups ended up at the gelato shop for the rose shaped gelato and macaroons. So yummy. That won't be the last time we will be having gelato! 

Most groups walked around and popped into the local souvenir shops before heading back to the hotel. We got some rest before we headed down to the lobby to meet for dinner at 7. The restaurant was right next door to the hotel. We ate beef stew, chicken, potatoes, and banana split for dessert! We decided to stay in for the night, because it's been raining a lot! We came back to the hotel to settle down for the night before another eventful day tomorrow! 

It's been so fun so far and we are looking forward to playing for the first time tomorrow and meeting the girls!

From Petrin over the city 

View of Lesser Town into the distance

In the castle square

July 12-Prague Day 1, by Kate Castro

We made it! After a 4 hour drive to San Francisco, a ten hour flight from San Francisco to Paris, and an hour flight from Paris to Prague, we finally arrived at our hotel. Brooke, our guide for the entire trip, & Jirka, our guide for the time we’re in Prague both picked us up from the airport upon our arrival. 

Once we got to the hotel & got settled in to our rooms we met back down in the lobby for some sight seeing. Brooke took us to the John Lennon Peace Wall down by the river. The wall was covered in colorful, vibrant artwork, making the perfect backdrop for selfies ;). Right around the corner from the wall and at the base of the St. Charles Bridge was a little market with a bunch of local produce, desserts & wine. We couldn’t pass up buying some macaroons while we were there. 

After the market, we all went up the stairs of the bridge and walked along the bridge to check out all the vendors & rub the statue for good luck. I’m so glad we got to get close to the river because last time we came to Prague on this trip was at the same time as the big flood and everything was guarded off. It really was nice to see a nice side of the city! 

After the sight seeing we ventured back to the hotel in the drizzling rain. We had about 15 minutes of down time back at the hotel and then met back up in the lobby to take the tram to dinner. For dinner we had a some yummy salad, pizza & pasta. Surprisingly, we were all too tired for dessert so after dinner we all walked back to the hotel with everyone. Since none of us slept too well on the long flight here it was pretty easy to adjust to the time change. Our first day in Prague is in the books & we can’t wait for day two!

Lennon Wall

Menu in the square

Alli and Eleanor with our incredible guide Brooke Rundle and great moms Terri and Mary Ann on the tram

On the Charles Bridge

One day out!

What a great group of people we have coming on our Europe trip this year! We are so excited for tomorrow, when we will meet up as a group at noon at San Francisco Airport to check in to our flight and make this thing happen! We've been preparing for months, and have practiced and met as a group several times in the last two weeks.

Here's a post from Kira Collins, who will be a sophomore at Truckee High School.

We are ecstatic for our upcoming trip. We have been practicing together for two weeks and getting to know each other. Some of us already knew some of the girls on the team but we have mostly come from different teams. We have a large range of skills. All of us have different strengths that will mesh together to make a great team. We can’t wait to begin our journey. I know we will all have a great time in Europe playing the sport we love. Amazing sights, experiences, and bonding is awaiting us. We hope you enjoy following along with us through Europe. Thanks for reading!

We will check in with you sometime during the day Tuesday from Prague.